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AmTrust management to meet with William Blair

Meeting to be held in London on October 13 hosted by William Blair.

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AFSIAmTrust

$27.82

0.46 (1.68%)

04/04/16

RHCO

04/04/16NO CHANGERHCOBuy

AmTrust change in auditor a positive, says SunTrust

SunTrust acknowledges that a change in auditors is often a cause for extra scrutiny, but the firm said AmTrust's replacing BDO as its auditor with the appointment of KPMG is actually a net positive that should help improve accounting and earnings quality. For all intents and purposes KPMG conducted its own audit before taking the position and had it found any irregularities it likely would have made BDO and the company resolve the concerns before it would have taken the role, SunTrust argues. The firm keeps its Buy rating on AmTrust shares, which are down 6.5% in afternoon trading.

04/05/16

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04/05/16NO CHANGERHCO

Reaction to AmTrust auditor news overdone, says SunTrust

SunTrust says that AmTrust's weakness yesterday appears to have been caused by its decision to name KPMG as its new auditor. The firm thinks the decision to hire what it calls "a top global auditor" is positive, as SunTrust expects KPMG to help improve AmTrust's accounting and earnings quality. SunTrust keeps a Buy rating on AmTrust.

SunTrust believes that AmTrust has a positive read through from data released by workers' compensation carriers Amerisafe and Employers Holdings. The firm says that both of the latter companies saw "material improvement in current accident year loss results." The firm expects AmTrust's Q1 loss ratio to be in-line with its five year range of 65%-67%. The firm keeps a Buy rating on the shares.

09/16/16

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09/16/16NO CHANGERHCO

AmTrust valuation 'particularly compelling,' says SunTrust

After traveling with AmTrust's CFO, SunTrust analyst Mark Hughes says that the stock's valuation is "particularly compelling." He says that concerns about the company are fading, while its EPS should resume growing. Hughes keeps a $43 price target and Buy rating on the stock.

Catch up on today's top five analyst initiations with this list compiled by The Fly: 1. Chesapeake Utilities (CPK) initiated with a Neutral at Ladenburg. 2. CONSOL (CNX) initiated with a Neutral at Goldman. 3. Johnson Controls (JCI) assumed with an Equal Weight at Barclays. 4. American Midstream Partners (AMID) initiated with a Buy at Janney Capital. 5. Brookfield Infrastructure (BIP) coverage resumed with an Outperform at Wells Fargo. This list is just a portion of The Fly's analyst coverage. To see The Fly's full Street Research coverage, click here.

Catch up on today's top five analyst downgrades with this list compiled by The Fly: 1. Abercrombie & Fitch (ANF) downgraded to Sell from Hold at Argus with analysts John Eade and Katelyn Bayone citing the company's third quarter miss and what they see as its "challenging sales outlook for the remainder of the year." 2. Duluth Holdings (DLTH) downgraded to Hold from Buy at Stifel and to Market Perform from Outperform at William Blair. 3. DAVIDsTEA (DTEA) downgraded to Market Perform from Outperform at BMO Capital and to Market Perform from Outperform at William Blair. 4. Hilton (HLT) downgraded to Outperform from Buy at CLSA with analyst Jon Oh citing valuation. 5. Horizon Pharma (HZNP) downgraded to Neutral from Buy at Mizuho. This list is just a portion of The Fly's full analyst coverage. To see The Fly's full Street Research coverage, click here.

Catch up on today's top five analyst upgrades with this list compiled by The Fly: 1. AstraZeneca (AZN) upgraded to Outperform from Market Perform at Leerink with analyst Seamus Fernandez saying the recent weakness in shares provides an "excellent entry point" ahead of several critical pipeline events that have the potential "to transform this giant into an exciting growth story." 2. Autodesk (ADSK) upgraded to Buy from Hold at Canaccord with analyst Richard Davis citing expectations for improved free cash flow, as he sees a path to $6 in FCF by 2020 and $11 per share in 2022. 3. Eaton (ENT) upgraded to Overweight from Neutral at JPMorgan with analyst Ann Duignan saying optionality of the company's balance sheet should offset broad weakness across its end markets. 4. Fluor (FLR) upgraded to Buy from Neutral at Citi with analyst Andrew Kaplowitz saying the company is positioned to outperform given amid oil and gas capex stabilization, a lift off the bottom in mining off the bottom and "muted" 2017 expectations. 5. Sysco (SYY) upgraded to Neutral from Sell at Goldman. This list is just a portion of The Fly's full analyst coverage. To see The Fly's full Street Research coverage, click here.